1804 Marbois Letter To Livingston Louisiana Purchase Monroe

1804 François Barbé-Marbois ALS to Robert R. Livingston – Louisiana Purchase AssociationOriginal autograph letter signed by François Barbé-Marbois, French Minister of the Public Treasury, written on official ministry letterhead at Paris on 30 Prairial, Year XII (June 19, 1804).Addressed to:Robert R. LivingstonUnited States Minister Plenipotentiary to France.In the letter, Barbé-Marbois asks Livingston to forward an enclosed communication to James Monroe, stating that it concerns business relating to his department and requesting that it be sent at the earliest opportunity.Historical ImportanceFew individuals played a more important role in the Louisiana Purchase than the three men connected by this letter:François Barbé-Marbois, Napoleon's Minister of the Public Treasury and France's chief negotiator.Robert R. Livingston, American Minister to France.James Monroe, special envoy and future fifth President of the United States.The Louisiana Purchase Treaty had been signed only a year earlier, on April 30, 1803, by Livingston, Monroe, and Barbé-Marbois. This letter documents the continuing diplomatic relationship among those central participants.ConditionOriginal manuscript letter on official French Treasury stationery with normal mailing folds, light edge wear, and minor toning. Ink remains dark and highly legible.An exceptional artifact of Napoleonic France and early American diplomacy.